L-E-A-D-E-R: D is for Decisive

Over the last 2 months as I have been speaking to various groups, I have increasingly been getting the question, “What do you consider to be the characteristics of a good leader”?

I believe that strong, powerful, effective leadership begins with authenticity. If people believe that they are experiencing the REAL you, then they are likely to feel more comfortable believing what you SAY, understanding what you DO, and therefore, more apt to feel confident in following you.

In addition, there are a few more summary thoughts that I have regarding effective leadership. Over the next few weeks, I will share a few quick thoughts about being an effective leader, letter by letter.

D is for Decisive

A great leader is decisive. He or she understands that NO decision is in fact A decision. They understand that in a crisis, time is generally not a friend, and that swift and thoughtful decisions, lead to strong actions that result in a definitive outcome good or bad.

A great leader also understands that when others are depending on their decisions…

A great leader understands that it is their decisions that propel their team, their organization. People at all levels in an organization NEED direction and directives are born from decisions. A leader’s attitude towards and methods of making decisions can heavily impact and infect his/her organization. If you are a slow decision maker that appears to need or desire other’s approval, agreement or sign off, your organization is likely to be slow, lethargic and uncompetitive when compared to other groups, departments or companies like yours. You will also unconsciously discourage your people from coming to you with their best ideas because of the time that it will take you to get to a decision and for fear that someone among the people that you consult with will thwart their idea. This will kill your team’s desire motivation to take the risk to bring you a good idea.

If your team sees you as a quick decision maker, they are likely to think the idea through and have some plan for execution/implementation because they know that it won’t take long for your to make a yes/no call and they must be ready to help to propel the idea forward. This is an exciting environment for highly motivated talented individual. They will want to work for and with you, they will want to share their ideas, they will take the risk to air an out of the box idea that could make your organization more efficient, more productive or enhance your profitability.